1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a musical education toy and, more specifically, a self-playing toy xylophone device capable of playing selected tunes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Several self-playing toy xylophones have been devised. Some play only one tune, while others are capable of playing a limited number of selected tunes.
Self-playing xylophones capable of playing a single, predetermined tune usually play a simple scale. These devices are generally similar to each other in that the percussion striker, usually a ball, gravitationally or inertially moves along a path and progressively strikes sound elements.
The xylophone-type toys disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,586,769 to Askin, U.S. Pat. No. 2,383,305 to Greene, U.S. Pat. No. 2,504,457 to Rundell, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,332 to Kreiss are single tune devices which are stepped in a manner resembling a staircase. A xylophone bar is placed on each step, the bars being arranged in a predetermined order, generally a standard scale. The ball will gravitationally roll successively from one step to the next lower step, striking each note in sequence.
The xylophone-type toys disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,504,456 to Rundell, U.S. Pat. No. 2,738,697 to Miller, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,002,313 to Hutchison each use a passage to gravitationally guide the percussion striker, a ball or coin, to the xylophone bars. These bars are also struck in the predetermined order in which the bars are placed.
Other self-playing xylophone-type toys are capable of playing different tunes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,231 to Postel and U.S. Pat. No. 2,955,502 to Ventura are capable of playing selected tunes by changing the instrumentality which guides the percussion strikers.
More specifically, Postel discloses a musical toy which resembles a record player having a particular pattern of holes into which marbles are placed. The record is placed on a special player and the marbles in the holes drop through guide holes in the top of the player and strike tone plates in a particular sequence to produce different musical tunes.
Ventura discloses a musical toy comprising a peg-board type of surface covered by a maze of holes. Each of these holes is capable of receiving a peg which, in turn, carries a tone-producing element.
Although toy-type xylophones heretofore known, such as those described above, are capable of self-playing a tune, they suffer from a number of disadvantages:
(a) they are capable of playing only one predetermined tune, or, if they can play selected tunes, the instrumentality must be changed, which is cumbersome; PA1 (b) they have minimal musical education value for a child because a child may be either too young to manipulate the toys, or lack the interest to deal with the cumbersome aspects inherent in the toys; PA1 (c) most lack the ability to easily vary the tempo of the tunes; PA1 (d) most lack a unique visual effect; and PA1 (e) most of the ones that play selected tunes are complex to manufacture (i.e. Ventura with the complicated music box) or require the purchase of many different instrumentalities (i.e. records for Postel) to play selected tunes. PA1 (a) is capable of easily, conveniently, and enjoyably playing an unlimited number of selected tunes; PA1 (b) provides enhanced educational value for children by implementing an easy and simple to understand method for playing selected tunes; PA1 (c) provides easily regulated tempos; PA1 (d) provides unique visual effects to interest children; and PA1 (e) is relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture (i.e. no electrical mechanisms), and comes complete with everything necessary to play selected tunes.
Unless a child is skilled in playing the toy as a musical instrument, the primary appeal of most known musical toys is limited to the initial stimulation of the child's basic sense of hearing and sound which results from the child's first attempts to play the toy as a musical instrument. Unfortunately, most young children do not have well developed musical skills, and, therefore, are very limited in their abilities to play musical toys as musical instruments. Thus, most known musical toys have only limited play value after their initial period of use.
It is well known that most young children are intrigued by visual experiences. For this reason, a musical toy which creates a simultaneous visual effect would have substantially greater play value for sustained time periods than is the case with most known musical toys. Such a musical toy would be particularly suitable for use by young children who do not have well developed musical skills. And, of course, such a musical toy should be both inexpensive to manufacture and safe and easy for use by young children.
Accordingly, the need exists for an educational musical toy that: